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If you asked me to name my least favorite genres of anime, odds are not bad that the first two things out of my mouth would be "sports" and "josei". With that in mind, in the past two years, I have seen three anime I would call 5-star shows. Chihayafuru is one of them.

I'm really glad no one told me 6 months ago what this show was about, because the conversation would have gone something like this:

"So there's this card game-"
"Okay, I'm going to stop you right there."

lol the last two lines of your post reminded me of Yugioh Abridged. I have to agree I am not really into this genre of anime. I tried, but Chihayafuru is amazing!!! It had a real slice of life feel for it. Though when it comes to the slice of life genre my fav. show has been Usagi Drop.

On another note one of my favorite parts of the finale (besides the teacher fighting for the Karuta club) was finding out that Kana needs to get to Class A to become a reader.

I remember in the previous episode when she stated her goal I thought that fits Kana so well but I was disappointed her goal was not competing & getting stronger in the game anymore. However now it seems her goal requires her to get stronger. I really liked that little touch.

And I guess it shows no matter your goal you have to work hard for it.

Of course you can get it off Amazon.jp! Only the first six volumes are currently listed and they each contain three episodes. The first press editions also come with extras like character charms and cards.

The second volume only did about 2,333 units BD/DVD combined, so the show clearly needs all the help it can get. Id' love to do my part too but unfortunately I'm already tied up with other imports (current and backlogged) and an unfortunate lack of shelf space.

Thanks. I bought the second volume today. I am doing it only because this is one of the very few titles that deserves to have a second season, I probably won't spend the time watching it though.

On TheAkiba, we share the love of one of the fall series in 2011, Chihayafuru (ちはやふる). As the series ended yesterday in Japan, we are more than happy to learn that the second season of the Anime was confirmed, secretly. As our source indicated, the confirmation was announced by the staffs and producers without informing the media or press. Expectations have been arose and the second season of the TV Anime will be around early next year, from January to April. And we are likely to see the official announcement coming soon.

So the second series will start similar to the first series? As in Chihiya will go around recruiting 5 new members to the Karuta club? I hope it will be quick, and Chihiya can focus on her growth.

On a side note, I do love the "Beauty in Vain" aspect of Chihiya, since she is comfortable with herself. No matter how you look, you should always be yourself and not worry "too much" (some is okay) about what other people want from you outwardly. I would totally fall in love with someone like that in real life.

So the second series will start similar to the first series? As in Chihiya will go around recruiting 5 new members to the Karuta club? I hope it will be quick, and Chihiya can focus on her growth.

On a side note, I do love the "Beauty in Vain" aspect of Chihiya, since she is comfortable with herself. No matter how you look, you should always be yourself and not worry "too much" (some is okay) about what other people want from you outwardly. I would totally fall in love with someone like that in real life.

Nya

The anime still follows manga pretty much to a tee, despite some skipped scenes concerning Suo in that last 3-4 episodes. But they are mostly minor and won't really affect the direction of the story.

Who would have thought that the anime I had chosen to watch just because there was nothing else at the time would become one of my favorite shows...

I don't regret sticking with this show even for a second! There were some moments that I liked less than others but over all the anime always was interesting for me, it had a good amount of humor and seriousness, really good mix.

Didn't know what karuta even stands for before watching this show! Really hope there will be season 2 in the future.

Without any regrets I give this show 9. If I were to watch it all in one go, it could've been even higher. I tend to lose feeling of excitement really fast so for me still being excited by the show means a lot

Maybe the Karuta club members can wear animal costumes while recruiting, like the K-On! girls. ^^; That'll add to Chihaya's reputation. ;p

Nah, I think the bunny costumes that Suzumiya Haruhi used would be a better motivation for recruits. Chihiya will probably get more than half the student body boys to sign up at that point. Although if Taichi had to wear one, I would not know how well that would end up.

But seriously, I really do hope that a series 2 does not spend half the episodes recruiting new members. You have your core group right now. Anyone new would be pretty much extras.

During the first few episodes, I liked how they presented Chihaya, Taichi and Arata's friendship, extending it into their high school lives, even though Arata had been separated from the group. The introduction of characters such as Kanade, Nishida and Tsutomu added more spice to the series, and it was fun to see the karuta club members interacting with each other and enduring karuta matches together.

As the series progresses, it becomes clear that karuta is not the main focus of Chihayafuru, but the characters. We get a glimpse into almost every character's personalities, interests, thoughts, doubts and fears, even minor ones such as Shinobu Wakamiya and Yumi Yamamoto. In the end, most of the characters get a chance to shine on the stage. Most of their backstories and motivations are interesting; soon, I find myself watching Chihayafuru not for the matches, but the characters.

Another aspect I like about Chihayafuru is that it maintains screentime of the characters, thus resulting in them being well-developed. We didn't get to see much of Arata at first, but later on we see him living in Fukui, and his eventual return to karuta. Even though he isn't with Chihaya and Taichi and was absent for some time in the beginning, he doesn't feel like a minor character at all in the series.

If there's a second season coming up, then I'll be absolutely delighted, because Chihayafuru has been a wonderfully heartwarming ride so far, and the last episode was no less better than the previous ones. This is a series I'd recommend to an anime watcher or fan. 8.5/10 for Chihayafuru.